Lamar

The Lamar University Phi Beta Delta International Scholars Honors Society Beta Xi Chapter inducted nine students and nine faculty members Monday, April 15. The society recognizes students and faculty for outstanding international academic work.

The Cardinal Singers will delight audiences with jazz classics and popular ’50s hits that are guaranteed to get toes tapping when they take the stage for the Lamarissimo! concert at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 25, in the Julie Rogers Theatre.

A Lamar student fainted Thursday morning, April 18, and struck her head, splitting it open and causing it to bleed around 10:30 while attending class in the Cherry Engineering Building at Lamar University in Beaumont.

As a result, another student fainted due to an extreme fear of blood, said Lamar University Police Chief Jason Goodrich.

Lamar University honored 110 employees with service awards at Lamar’s annual staff recognition program. The Lamar Staff Advisory Council hosted the event April 17 in the Mary and John Gray Library University Reception Center.

The Lamar University Staff Advisory Council has honored President James "Jimmy" Simmons with the “Distinguished President Award,” citing his inspiration and dedication during one of the brightest periods in Lamar’s history.

Diann Brodnax, president of the Staff Advisory Council, surprised Simmons with a special tribute and the presentation of a plaque at the conclusion of Lamar’s annual staff awards ceremony Tuesday, April 16.

Donna Blaisdell, executive assistant to the director of the Mary and John Gray Library, earned honors Tuesday as Lamar University’s first recipient of The Texas State University System Staff Excellence Award.

Blaisdell is a resident of Lumberton and a 28-year veteran of the Lamar staff.

Qiang Xu has been selected as Lamar University’s 2013 University Scholar. President James Simmons announced the honor during a ceremony April 10 in the University Reception Center of the Mary and John Gray Library. The University Scholar Award is the most prestigious research honor bestowed upon a faculty member at Lamar.

The Lamar University Jack Brooks Chair in Government and Public Service will focus on substance abuse when it hosts the 2013 Brooks Conference on Thursday, April 18.
Activities will begin at 7:30 a.m. in the Lamar Institute of Technology Multi-Purpose Center, at Jimmy Simmons Boulevard and East Lavaca.
Dawn Mathis of the Drug Enforcement Administration in Houston will be the keynote speaker for a luncheon from noon to 1:15 p.m. Other guest speakers include Shane Howard, Jefferson County tax assessor-collector.

While we harbor no disrespect for the Wall Street Journal who called us “that scrappy little paper from Southeast Texas,” we prefer to think of ourselves as simple seekers of the truth. We’re of the opinion that headlines and sound bites never tell the whole story. Our readers demand all the facts, facets and flavors of every story or event. And, they expect to be informed, educated and stirred to action.